Crackdown on Legalized Marijuana

I would love to jump in and talk politics but that’s how we got several threads shut down. If you want to keep the thread open tamp down some of the politics. I agree this president is a dipshit.

Our only hope is to wait until the next administration. Hopefully not too much damage will be done in the meantime.

Folks that are distributing cannabis and shops that are selling in legal state need to follow the law to the T. We don’t want unethical legal businesses breaking the law and screwing things up for the rest of us. The Feds would use that to shut things down in the legal market.

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I largely agree with you, but the only reason this thread exists is because Trump "won" the election. It's hard to keep the thread apolitical given that.

My only point is to prevent Cannabists from believing it doesn't matter who you vote for. This thread's existence is evidence that it absolutely DOES matter who you vote for.

Again, if the Dem won the 2016 Presidential election.... this thread wouldn't exist. Glossing over this fact and trying to make it seem like it doesn't matter what Party you support seems unhelpful and inaccurate.

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This thread would have a slightly different name like, why the f#ck is cannabis still a Schedule 1 substance?
The previous Dem Prez did squat to change that totally and completely insane lie, which is the biggest impediment
to the legal cannabis cause. Shame on him and a gigantic "missed opportunity"!

That continued Schedule 1 status was a "continued crackdown on cannabis"---
Bad, worse, worst??
We deserve better choices

I just wanted to remind folks that if things get too intense with a lot of political rhetoric and strong opinions the mods could shut this thread down. We have had several political threads shut down the past year. I understand that politics is involved in the cannabis issue.

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This thread would have a slightly different name like, why the f#ck is cannabis still a Schedule 1 substance?
The previous Dem Prez did squat to change that totally and completely insane lie, which is the biggest impediment
to the legal cannabis cause. Shame on him and a gigantic "missed opportunity"!

That continued Schedule 1 status was a "continued crackdown on cannabis"---
Bad, worse, worst??
We deserve better choices

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Actually the Dem Platform called for legalization in 2016. The Dem candidate said she would reschedule Cannabis. The current President TOLD US he would nominate a prohibitionist to AG. And here we are.

I don't think the Dems are great. But pretending they are equivalent to the Party that gave us Jeff Sessions isn't helpful.

I agree Obama dropped the ball. But we WERE headed in a better direction at the end of his Admin (on cannabis, at least). I didn't have to wonder if my dispensary was going to be open tomorrow.

I agree we deserve better choices. But we have to play the ball where it lies. And false equivalencies don't help.

DENVER — Marijuana business owners are increasingly pouring their profits into lobbying lawmakers as they face a federal crackdown from the Trump administration.

A USA TODAY survey found hundreds of thousands of dollars flowing from the cannabis industry into campaign finance accounts of both lawmakers and political action committees, with emphasis this year on Congressional Republicans who are trying to stop the Trump administration from targeting marijuana businesses.

In the United States, the only way to get anything done is to bribe a politician. So this is good....

Again, this thread only exists because the Democrat lost the Presidential election (despite winning the majority of the vote). Appointing a 24 year old with zero qualifications to a deputy Drug Czar position... even for a DAY shows what an absolute joke this Administration is. And the kid lied on his resumè. How many members of this Admin lied to the FBI or on a Government form? Ridiculous.

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How many members of the previous administration lied under oath about if...well tons of stuff. You aren't getting too angry about that. Why?

Your argument is that the incompetence of the Trump Admin will help us? Interesting. That hasn't happened yet but I'll keep that in mind. There may be a silver lining to being ruled by incompetent morons.

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No. My argument is that you can't have it both ways. What was the purpose of posting the article with your comments? Either it is a good thing for us or a bad thing for us or an I-don't-know thing. If good, yay! If bad, huh? Why? If I don't know, why the commentary?

I forgot the Koch's are personally for Cannabis. Their sole redeeming quality. My point there was that it is pretty clear who Politicians were working for on the tax cuts/The Donor Relief Act of 2017. Paul Ryan literally received a payoff for giving the Koch's billions of dollars. This strikes me as disgustingly corrupt.

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You tried to make the point that Koch's are behind some Republicans so we shouldn't vote for them. Because...Koch. I pointed out that if cannabis is an important issue then the Koch's are our friends. For the partisan rant about how they do things like support tax cuts so they are bad, I suspect that is not going to be the Dems strategy for very long. The tax bill was great and the parade of horribles told us by the Democrats about what would happen if it passed are not going to happen. Everyone here (Except for those who don't pay taxes to the U.S.) is probably going to be better off because of it. I'm not going to argue it, we'll just wait and see.

The Koch's PERSONALLY support legalization. Great. They aren't on the ballot though. As I've shown, Democrats are 4-5 times more likely to support even REPUBLICAN sponsored legalization bills. Don't blindly vote Party, of course. If you happen to be represented by one of the rare Republicans who are pro-cannabis... by all means vote for them. Though I bet their Dem challengers would be at least equally pro-cannabis.

You might dislike it, but that doesn't change the fact that your average Dem is far more likely to support Cannabis than your average Republican. If you happen to be represented by the rare pro-Cannabis Republican.... vote for them.

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It's only rare when the partisans get involved. It forces people to choose for things other than cannabis.

Again, if the Dem won the 2016 Presidential election.... this thread wouldn't exist. Glossing over this fact and trying to make it seem like it doesn't matter what Party you support seems unhelpful and inaccurate.

@OldNewbie That last line is where I decided providing detailed responses to you isn't worth it any longer. The only people who use terms like "Trump Derangement Syndrome" are those who consume Right Wing Media exclusively. Rational debate with such people isn't possible. And frankly, I find calling this entire thread a symptom of "derangement" to be insulting. There are very valid and rational reasons to worry about what Trump's Justice Department is planning to do with cannabis.

I know it seems like I'm just shilling for Dems. I'm not. I'm simply noticing that EVERY bill for Federal Legalization or protections for the Cannabis Industry is overwhelmingly supported by Democrats, rather than Republicans. You seem unwilling to accept that simple fact and have been unable to refute it.

If we all want to pretend that reality isn't true, ok. We are living in the age of alternative facts.

Canada is going to pay off their deficit selling weed as they will control all the sales, while USA keeps calling it a schedule 1 drug! Can you imagine if the legalized it like Canada. Tons of money to be made. Hopefully you neighbor will create pressure to legalize it nation wide in the U.S. I say after a year or 2 when you see in Canada drunk driving. car crashes down, less violence etc. Than an only than will some of your lawmakers which profit from the big pharmas will give in.

In fact a recent survey done with Canadians indicated that once they get weed they will take alcohol less.

Canada is going to pay off their deficit selling weed as they will control all the sales, while USA keeps calling it a schedule 1 drug! Can you imagine if the legalized it like Canada. Tons of money to be made. Hopefully you neighbor will create pressure to legalize it nation wide in the U.S. I say after a year or 2 when you see in Canada drunk driving. car crashes down, less violence etc. Than an only than will some of your lawmakers which profit from the big pharmas will give in.

In fact a recent survey done with Canadians indicated that once they get weed they will take alcohol less.

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I've made the point that if the Government was going to get into the Nanny State Business, telling us which recreational substances we can and can't use... they should prohibit alcohol and allow cannabis. We'd see a reduction in crime, healthcare costs, and accidents. Of course, prohibition never works with any substance.

The problem is, we already HAVE ran this experiment in Legal States. I've heard States referred to as the "Laboratories of Democracy". Well, guess what. We've run the "Legal Weed" Experiment for years now. It was a success in those States. Time to roll it out nationwide. Unfortunately, we aren't governed based on evidence and rationality.

I'm not convinced seeing a success with Cannabis in Canada will do much to convince our hardline Drug Warriors. But I'd be happy to be proven wrong.

@OldNewbie That last line is where I decided providing detailed responses to you isn't worth it any longer. The only people who use terms like "Trump Derangement Syndrome" are those who consume Right Wing Media exclusively.

I'm simply noticing that EVERY bill for Federal Legalization or protections for the Cannabis Industry is overwhelmingly supported by Democrats, rather than Republicans. You seem unwilling to accept that simple fact and have been unable to refute it.

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You seem fairly well informed. How is it you brought in the Koch's to the discussion in a negative way?

If we all want to pretend that reality isn't true, ok. We are living in the age of alternative facts.

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This is why I keep bringing up sizzle and lying eyes. As has been demonstrated to you repeatedly in this thread, what you have stated just ain't so. I'll leave it to you to determine if what you stated was what you believed to be the reality.

This is why I keep bringing up sizzle and lying eyes. As has been demonstrated to you repeatedly in this thread, what you have stated just ain't so. I'll leave it to you to determine if what you stated was what you believed to be the reality.

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Show me one recent Pro-Cannabis Bill that has more Republicans than Dems signing on to it.

Hell, show me one that has an EQUAL number of Dems and Republicans signing on to it.

Every bill you've provided as "evidence" of how great the Republicans are on Cannabis, has had mostly Democrat supporters.

By the way, quoting single words from my statements to help you make a point seems a bit dishonest, no?

@OldNewbie Well you've said something I agree with. I'm not an ideologue. There are a few conservative intellectuals/writers I enjoy. None of them are Trump fans and I don't agree with them on every point, but I don't think one side is "evil". I just think based on voting records alone, one Party is demonstrably better on Cannabis in 2018. Not perfect, but better.

I posted a USA Today article a few posts back about how Cannabis Business Owners are giving more to Republicans right now. They control most legislatures so that makes sense. And if there's one thing that will change a Politician's mind, it's that sweet sweet cash.

@OldNewbie That last line is where I decided providing detailed responses to you isn't worth it any longer. The only people who use terms like "Trump Derangement Syndrome" are those who consume Right Wing Media exclusively.

Clearly suffer from TDS. Alienated remaining friends, estranged family, and could lose a job. Desperately needed to talk about it, but all of the political threads were shut down. Crackdown provided golden opportunity.

The year has been a valuable, if sobering, experience. Feeling a little better. Revived interest in so many issues that seemed to be progressing. Climate change, in particular, has offered some consolation. Learned that after we finish our mass extinction, Earth will almost certainly recover from us in ten million years or so. Worried it would be like Venus forever. Once our time here has been reduced to a thin line of plastic between layers of rock, there might even be little racoon or prairie dog people scurrying about. Very comforting.

@OldNewbie Well you've said something I agree with. I'm not an ideologue. There are a few conservative intellectuals/writers I enjoy. None of them are Trump fans and I don't agree with them on every point, but I don't think one side is "evil". I just think based on voting records alone, one Party is demonstrably better on Cannabis in 2018. Not perfect, but better.

I posted a USA Today article a few posts back about how Cannabis Business Owners are giving more to Republicans right now. They control most legislatures so that makes sense. And if there's one thing that will change a Politician's mind, it's that sweet sweet cash.

Clearly suffer from TDS. Alienated remaining friends, estranged family, and could lose a job. Desperately needed to talk about it, but all of the political threads were shut down. Crackdown provided golden opportunity.

The year has been a valuable, if sobering, experience. Feeling a little better. Revived interest in so many issues that seemed to be progressing. Climate change, in particular, has offered some consolation. Learned that after we finish our mass extinction, Earth will almost certainly recover from us in ten million years or so. Worried it would be like Venus forever. Once our time here has been reduced to a thin line of plastic between layers of rock, there might even be little racoon or prairie dog people scurrying about. Very comforting.

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I'm truly sorry you're having a hard time. Honestly, taking a break from the News isn't a bad thing every now and again. The pendulum always swings back the other way. Unfortunately for Trump, his vile rhetoric as a candidate and President is going to cause the pendulum to swing even faster to the other side than if a normal Republican was enacting basically the same policies.

As for climate change, I am thoroughly embarrassed that the leader of our Nation considers climate change to be a "Chinese Hoax". He couldn't have said anything stupider to be honest. All countries have Conservative Parties. Only ours obstinately denies science in this way. But really, this isn't about saving "the environment". The Environment will be just fine. We are trying to save human civilization here. You'd think everyone would at least agree on THAT goal.

I love it; we are the virus that needs to be eradicated, so that life can go on without us

I'm thinking that the rescinding of the cole memo was just to distract us from other outrages.

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LOL. You might be right. And I'm still thinking most US Attorneys don't want to get involved in the shit-show that a dispensary crackdown would be. Also, a lot of legal States would prevent local and State Law Enforcement from assisting the DEA in any raids. What a mess a crackdown would be.

. they should prohibit alcohol and allow cannabis. We'd see a reduction in crime, healthcare costs, and accidents. Of course, prohibition never works with any substance.

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Absolutely. Alcohol hands down causes fatalities, family problems, addiction, a whole list of other ailments. For what its worth the only downside about cannabis is if someone is genetically prone to psychosis or schizophrenia the THC strains will aggrevate or awaken it. However, studies have show the CBD actually helps pychosis patients, depression, and mood disorders.

I still can't get why the U.S. has classified cannabis as bad as phentynol, LCD. In fact a while back someone intervied Obama on that same question and he was like dumbfounded. Hmmm, We will look into that " was his answer.

The only side effect cannabis it can cause worsening anxiety if you are using daily in the amount of 1 gram per day or above. Other than that only 6 percent of users get addicted and even if your are addicted the withdrawal symptoms are less than nicotine, alcohol.

I still can't get why the U.S. has classified cannabis as bad as phentynol, LCD. In fact a while back someone intervied Obama on that same question and he was like dumbfounded. Hmmm, We will look into that " was his answer.

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To understand how we ended up here, it is important to go back to what was happening in the United States in the early 1900’s just after the Mexican Revolution. At this time we saw an influx of immigration from Mexico. Not surprisingly, these new Americans brought with them their native language, culture, and customs. One of these customs was the use of cannabis as a medicine and relaxant. During hearings on marijuana law in the 1930’s, claims were made about marijuana’s tendency to cause men of color to become violent and solicit sex from white women. This imagery became the backdrop for the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 which effectively banned its use and sales.

While the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was ruled unconstitutional years later, it was replaced with the Controlled Substances Act in the 1970’s and brought forth President Nixon’s “War on Drugs”. But from its inception, the war on drugs has been a ruthless, relentless and naked war on minorities, especially African-Americans. In an interview in Harpers in 1994, disgraced Nixon White House advisor John Ehrlichman made the frank admission that the war on drugs was not about law enforcement getting a handle on drug sales and use, but another weapon to lock up as many blacks as possible. "We knew we couldn't make it illegal to be either against the (Vietnam) war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin. And then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities," Ehrlichman said. "We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news. Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did." But an admission by the federal government that the laws are biased and unfair, and have not done much to combat the drug plague, would be an admission of failure.